


Friends & Physical Comforts

by weird_aunt_writing



Category: Mass Effect: Andromeda
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-16
Updated: 2018-11-16
Packaged: 2019-08-24 15:15:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,083
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16642673
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/weird_aunt_writing/pseuds/weird_aunt_writing
Summary: While Sara Ryder takes a moment to herself to mourn her father and all the losses she’s suffered in Andromeda SAM calls on her friends to provide the comfort he cannot. All the girls aboard the Tempest bring snacks and movies in hopes of helping her feel better.





	Friends & Physical Comforts

Old mementos and an empty coffee mug sat atop the small table beside Ryder’s bed, the end of a pen taking the coffee mug’s place between her lips. A new journal- barely written in, but already stained with tears- lay open on her lap while she stared at the blank pages, wondering what she should write. Lexi had suggested the idea. Writing her thoughts down if she wouldn’t tell an actual person how she felt. Problem was that it was more of a “couldn’t” or “shouldn’t” rather than a “wouldn’t” situation. Heleus was her own personal hell. Waking up just to crash into the Scourge, which almost took Scott, and still might, an inhospitable “golden world” which did take her father, and still, after both events, heading to the Nexus only to find that the Initiative they all invested so much time and hope into had spent a year floundering. Resources, food, water, power, everything they needed to wake people up, and a world where they could get these things were seemingly impossible to find.

Oh and thanks to her father’s decision, it was all now her responsibility to make it happen.

Her new job included inspiring “hope” in the colonists and her teammates. Everyone in Heleus had lost something, her story was one of thousands of people who were suffering in the new galaxy, but she was their symbol that things were going to change and get better. That they’d stop losing so much. Even if she wanted to take time to wallow in the pain of her loss and “share the burden” with someone else, the galaxy couldn’t let her. Their new hero lost in despair herself? No. She had to put it aside to save them.

But she missed her family. She missed her father, whose loss was so sudden and she hardly had time to process it that it still didn’t feel like he was gone. She crossed her fingers every time she made a decision as Pathfinder and hoped that she made him proud. She missed Scott, and hated that he’s missed out on everything they’ve done in Andromeda. This was supposed to be an adventure for them to do together. But mostly, she missed her mother. The bond they’d had when she was alive was something Sara desperately needed, and she kept wishing her mom could be there to hold her while she cried and tell her everything would be alright. Like she did the first time Sara sprained her ankle on the playground, and when she had her first “heartbreak” in junior high. Knowing that one day maybe she could again should make it better, but it just made it worse. That she had to endure the pain of losing her mother while her father knew she wasn’t really gone the whole time and kept it to himself had her infuriated with him. Then she’d remember he was gone permanently and the cycle of hurt would start again.

They were so close to the end of the terror, four functioning outposts on worlds that were now self-healing, and a plan to expedite the terraforming abilities left by the Remnant. All she had to do was hold on for everyone a little bit longer. If the solitude of her own room had to be the only place she could let herself truly feel the pain of the losses, she could handle that for the next few days.

“Pathfinder?” a tentative, computerized voice spoke in her head, breaking through her thoughts of self-pity.

Solitude. Right.

“SAM, you know you can call me Sara,” she answered, hurriedly wiping at her tears even though SAM was already well aware that she’d been crying.

“Yes…Sara,” he spoke again, still hesitant and unsure that he should be. “Lexi suggested that friends and physical comforts would help in a time of crisis. I apologize for the intrusion, but I,” he paused again, “I thought you might enjoy the company.”

A moment later the doors to her personal quarters slid open with a hiss and a set of girlish voices preceded the five women entering the room, each of their arms laden with goodies. They all approached Sara as carefully as SAM had spoken to her and Suvi led the charge by gently settling on the edge of the bed.

“SAM notified us,” she explained, her soft tone and thick accent almost making the words inaudible. “We were already on the Nexus so Vetra…pulled some strings and had it all rush-ordered for immediate delivery to the ship.” She gestured to the bags of snacks, movies, and everything else they’d brought in.

“Even managed to get dextro-friendly chocolates,” Vetra chimed in herself. Her teeth were just visible past her mandibles as she grinned, obviously pleased with the stash she acquired.

For a few awkward moments they stood there, Sara’s blank stare making them suddenly unsure that this was such a good idea after all. The pathfinder hadn’t invited them, but she wasn’t kicking them out either. Vetra’s grin faltered and someone coughed uncomfortably during those few seconds of silence until Peebee’s ever so bubbly voice broke through.

“Well what are we waiting for?” she asked, obviously not one known for her patience…or following social cues. She sauntered over to the couches and began shoving them over in front of the screen like they had for Liam’s movie night. After no one else moves she sends an exasperated look at the group and Cora finally follows after her while Ryder…breaks into a fit of giggles.

“You…you guys…are the best,” she manages to get out in between laughs, and everyone can’t help but join in as the tears of sadness that previously covered her cheeks turned to tears of joy. As their laughter quieted down, everyone moved to finish setting up and then settled into a spot while Vetra set the movie to play -how Vetra knew and found her favorite rom-com was beyond her knowledge- and Lexi passed out snacks.

A beeping sound notified Sara of a new message on her omni-tool and she smiled when she saw Liam’s name pop up. [Everything okay?], the message read, [Jaal and I heard a lot of laughing coming from your room].

[Everything’s fine, just having a girl’s night], she typed back, and relaxed into her seat with a personal pint of ice cream and a spoon in hand, surrounded by her friends while the opening credits of the movie started to roll.


End file.
